(from NAO
Design Press Release) In September
of 2002, reports of a "strange, brightly lit, armored hovercraft
cruising about" began to come from the campus of Stanford
University. Perhaps it was the pounding music emanating from it
which betrayed its origins as not military, but rather
entrepreneurial. And recreational.

Meet the JL421 Badonkadonk ( just sound it out- "ba-donk-a-donk" ),
one of the more ambitious creations to date from the renegade NAO
Design company (www.naodesign.net). Founded in 2001 by designer Neal
Ormond IV, NAO has quickly established itself as a new creative
force across a wide variety of design fields, ranging from graphics
and web design to architecture and automotives. "The graphics and
home furnishings pay the bills", explains Ormond, "but the real fun
is in battle tanks and robots and flamethrowers, right?”

Well, whether you’re more in the market for a modernist cantilevered
table or a drum that shoots fire at the instant of each hit, you
can’t beat the JL421, or “Donk”, as it is nicknamed, for uniqueness
and utility among NAO’s products. To look at it, one might think it
to be a hovercraft, but in fact it runs on four wheels, concealed by
a unique industrial-strength rubberized flexible skirt that shields
and protects the wheels to within an inch of the ground, while still
allowing for enough flex to give clearance over bumpy and uneven
terrain. The Donk can transport cargo or a crew of five internally
or on the roof, and can be piloted from within the armored shell or
from an exposed standing position through the hatch, thanks to
special one-way steel mesh armor windows that allow seeing out
without others seeing in, and a control stick that pivots up and
down to allow piloting from the standing or seated positions. The
interior is fully carpeted and cozy, with accent lighting and room
for up to five people. A 400 watt premium sound system with PA is
mounted to project sound both into the cabin and outward from behind
the windows. The exterior is a steel shell with a rust patina, and
features head and tail lights, turn signal lights, trim lighting,
underbody lighting, and fixed slats protecting the windows. Master
power, ignition, all lighting, and stereo features are controlled
from a single switchboard to the left of the driver, accessible from
either the seated or standing driving position. Power comes from an
air-cooled, 6hp Tecumseh gasoline engine, with centrifugal clutch,
giving the Donk a top speed of 40 mph.

The concept for such a vehicle came to Ormond and associate Frank
Pollock in the spring of 2002. Despite the wide array of design
skills already under their belts, this would be the first powered
vehicle either had designed or built. “We knew we wanted something
which was at once both malevolent and benevolent, being battle-ready
and armored, yet cozy on the inside and irresistible to people with
its lights and sounds” says Pollock. The build started with a
go-cart chassis and engine, but the similarities to most vehicles
end there. A reinforced steel shell was built off the chassis, the
roof and hatch were installed, the special control stick and pilot
controls were developed and rigorously tested, and once the bare
bones were functioning properly, the plethora of accessories and
goodies were added; the inside was fully carpeted and upholstered,
electrical and sound systems installed, camera and monitor, horn,
fog machine, storage compartments, and a whole galaxy of
multi-colored headlights, brake lights, turn signals, rope lights,
strobes, underbody neons, and LEDs were installed. And because every
tank needs a good defense, they even designed a modular pneumatic
cannon that can be mounted to the vehicle or carried by its
personnel.

So where can one operate something like the Donk? Well it’s not
strictly street-legal in its home state of California, but that
doesn’t hinder this ship. Its debut was on the desert sands of the
Burning Man festival in Nevada (www.burningman.com) in August of
2002. The miles of wide-open alkali flats are ideal conditions for
this vehicle, and every year it returns for a week of “Donking”. The
other 358 days of the year it can be found at its home garage back
on the idyllic campus of Stanford University. Both Ormond and
Pollock are recent graduates of the University, and in fact became
acquainted in the drum section of the infamous Stanford Band (www.stanford.edu/group/lsjumb).
The band maintains a number of active alumni, and as such Ormond
puts his Badonkadonk to good use. During the day, at band and
sporting events, it is used as a transport for drums and other band
equipment, and as the current flagship to be seen at the head of the
Band’s ranks, as well as a method of intimidation and eradication of
the errant UC Berkeley student that wanders onto Stanford land.

But come nightfall, the Donk transforms into party-mode. With a
designated driver at the helm, the lights and music set the scene as
it glides around the campus, looking for trouble or fun. Its mere
presence has the ability to draw out a crowd, and its accessories
and crew tend to keep that crowd interested. On more than one
occasion, the Donk has reportedly rolled up to waning local parties
and “stolen” the party away from the inside and reinvigorated and
relocated it to the JL421.

Of the public’s reaction, Ormond and Pollock describe the early days
as “shock and awe” while observers tried to figure it out. By now
though, it has become a prominent fixture on campus. Still, its
creators get a lot of questions from passers-by. “Is it hovering’
and ‘Are there Jawas inside’ are the most frequent ones by far. And
my answer for both is always yes” reports Pollock. ‘Jawas’ is a
reference to the Star Wars characters, and this guess is not far
off, as the designers admit the ‘Sail Barge’ from Return of the Jedi
was a heavy influence on the form of the Jl421. Other common
references include the Daleks from the film Dr. Who, and the old
iron-sides ship USS Merrimack. Just don’t call it cute.

The JL421 Badonkadonk has been offered for sale on naodesign.net for
a year now, but just this past October it became available through
Amazon.com. That’s right, for $19,999.95 you too can find yourself
at the helm of your very own Badonkadonk! Production is on an
order-by-order basis, and each one is highly customized to the
buyer. “To be honest”, says Ormond, “the Donk caters to a very
specific niche. Everyone likes the Donk, but recent publicity has
spurred as much or more interest in some of the other one-of-a-kind
projects NAO has done”. And it is the technology behind some of
these other, newer projects that Ormond is incorporating into plans
for NAO’s recently-announced follow-up to the JL421. “Follow-up
maybe isn’t the right term”, he says, “because it will be an order
of magnitude more advanced than the Donk, and look and move nothing
like it. We’ve come so far since the summer of 2002; our abilities
in metalworking are much advanced, we’ve begun implementing
microprocessor controls, and we now have the experience of several
vehicles behind us. Plus we’ve recently added flamethrowers and fire
of all sorts to our repertoire”. If this next vehicle turns out to
be all it’s supposed to, the JL421 Badonkadonk will finally and
sadly pale before such a mechanical leviathan of steel, sound, and
fire. “Don’t worry”, says Ormond with a hint of irony, “we’re
professionals”.